766I Don't Own Naruto or Percy Jackson and the Olympians!
The Immortal Son of the Earth – Chapter 6
Naruto didn't know where he was; he'd never seen such a place in his life. It was dark, extremely so, but for some reason he could still see; well not necessarily see, but he could sense everything around him – the cold limestone walls, the frozen water on the ground, and an extremely large root creeping into the strange hollow tavern that he was standing in. There was some sort of energy coming from the root, as if it was the very root of the earth and was its life force – the link that gave the earth nutrients. It made Naruto feel oddly calm and at peace, just like he would feel while flying in the sky, but even stronger.
'Where am I?' wondered Naruto to himself as he looked around in the darkness.
"So you have finally come to me, my dear son." A warm and loving voice boomed through the darkness, but Naruto knew that it was speaking to him telepathically. The voice made Naruto feel at home and cozy, like when he would speak with Rhea and Hestia, but was this rather peculiar to say to the least. "I have yearned to see you with my own eyes; you have grown into a fine young man and I am proud to see you with such power."
'Who are you?' spoke Naruto through his mind as he continued to turn around, trying to catch a glimpse of the owner of the voice.
"I am your Mother, dear son, and you have finally come to see me."
'I can't see you.' Naruto replied as he stopped turning, now focusing on listening to the voice; he had never known who his mother was, not even Rhea told him. 'Are you really my mom? Where are you?'
"I'm sorry my son, but I do not have a true form for you to see right now." The voice sounded genuinely sad and it made Naruto frown. "My true body is asleep at the moment, and I can only use a small part of my consciousness to speak with you." Naruto's mind reeled; his mother was supposed to be human, so why did this sound so supernatural. "I love you, son, I really do, and I hope to see you someday when I am fully awake."
The voice's words sound truly loving and it made Naruto feel very cozy and loved. 'Can you tell me your name?'
"Not at the moment, dear son; names have power, and when you are ready I will tell you my name, but I would prefer you call me Mother." The voice seemed to sound happy and optimistic. "One day you will awaken my blood, and when that day comes – the day when you gain power beyond your most wild imagination and surpass even the greatest gods – you will know my name and we will finally be able to meet in person"
Naruto really wanted to finally call someone mom, but it felt really weird and oddly uncomfortable to call a random voice "mom". The voice sounded loving and caring, but it also sounded ancient and powerful, as if it was some sort of primal power was speaking from the origin of the earth. Even Rhea did not sound so powerful, and Naruto had seen his Nana angry – not a sight he wouldn't care to see again. Then there was the strange notion about him gaining incredible power; that just sounded overly suspicious and malicious.
"I understand your reluctance to call me Mother, but soon you will come to accept this." Naruto felt the world around him shake violently, and he was having a hard time staying on his two feet – for some reason he couldn't mold he air around him and hover. "Our time here is limited, so I will leave further explanation to the next time we meet; remember, dear son, I love you."
The ground was starting to crack and the frozen water was breaking apart, but the ceiling of the place was even worse. Naruto felt cracks run deep across the rocky ceiling, and with a loud rumble, rocks came tumbling down. Naruto tried to move, but the ground was far too unstable and he couldn't get any proper footing and the air was not responding to him. His senses seemed to be the only working part of his body, so he knew perfectly that a large rock was falling towards him and it was going to crush him.
Naruto woke up with his heart beating like he'd sparred with his Nana, and his shirt was wet from cold sweat. Reality came rushing back to his mind. He remembered that it was his first day in Camp Half-Blood and he'd nodded off while testing out his sleeping bag. Sleeping on the floor with only a thin sleeping bag as support did not feel comfortable, but given how tired Naruto was after a night of traveling, fighting and walking, he'd fallen asleep within seconds of lying down. The dream he had seemed almost distant already, but it was far too distinct to forget and he had a feeling that it was not just a normal dream.
"Well, look who decided to wake up."
Naruto sat up from his sleeping bag while rubbing his eyes, trying to rid himself of his grogginess. His eyes refocus and he looked up to see Luke standing above him with his arms crossed. Percy was right next to him with an amused smile on his face. Naruto looked out the entrance and saw that it was sunset; the orange glow of the sun covered the camp like a warm blanket. His brother Apollo must have been driving his chariot to nearly the end of the earth, Naruto mused as he stretched his arms.
"Sorry, I guess I was more tired than I thought." Naruto stood from the ground and realized that he felt much better after the nap, despite the strange dream. "Is there something that I should be doing?" he asked when he noticed that the cabin was empty except for them, even Icarus and Regulus were gone.
"Everyone's left for the Dining Pavilion; it's dinner time, so let's get going now if you want something to eat." Luke chuckled as Naruto smiled and nodded. "Come on, we all sit at the Hermes table."
Naruto followed Luke out of the cabin and the three of them headed down to the dining area, and even from this distance Naruto could hear his fellow campers' laughter and chatter. The son of the Sky God did feel hungry, especially after his nap, and he got his normal hankering for ramen or maybe some of his Auntie Hestia's homemade cookies. He looked around and wondered if the Goddess of the Hearth was still around, but he didn't see her. After that weird dream, Naruto had an urge to contact his Nana or his Aunt and consult with them; after all, it was not every day a demigod would dream of a weird voice claiming to be his mother. There was a chance that it was only a random dream that was a bit more peculiar than his usual ones about ramen, but the realty and vividness of it was still bothering him.
"You okay, Naruto?" asked Percy when he saw that the new camper had a strange expression on his face. "You were zoning out for a while."
"Yeah," Naruto replied as he gave the younger teenager with a smile. "I just had a weird dream." Percy had his own strange look that came onto his face as he heard about a weird dream, as if he'd been going through the same thing.
"Here we are!" announced Luke as they walked into the dining pavilion.
The entire area was filled with people, but not all the tables were used. The tables of Zeus, Poseidon, Hera, and Artemis were all empty and the Hermes table was filled with people; Naruto wondered if they even had enough space to sit down. The entire court yard turned to look at Naruto, curious about the third new camper in one week. The blond felt a little weird with so many people looking at him, but fortunately, they looked away and turned back to their meals after a short while. Luke led Percy and Naruto to the Hermes table, and the group made room for the three. Naruto received a plateful of food – fruits, salads, and an extra lean slice of roast beef. It didn't look nearly as good as his ramen, but it was still pretty appetizing.
"Come on, we have to make our offerings." Percy followed Luke as the entire table walked over to the large brazier and offered a part of their food to the fire. Naruto gave a look of understanding to his two cabin mates and followed along, standing at the far back since he was the newest member there.
Then Naruto felt someone tug at his sleeve, and he turned back to see little Lacy smiling up at him with Regulus sitting on her shoulder. The blond had almost forgotten that the little girl was also in the Hermes Cabin since she hadn't been claimed yet.
"Hey Lacy, how are you feeling?" asked Naruto kindly as he messed up her hair.
The girl giggled and beamed up at the older camper. "I love this camp already!" Lacy pointed over to a different line of campers, and Naruto saw that all of them – boys and girls – looked like some of the movie stars he saw the few times he watched television. "Silena and her siblings are very nice; they treated me very well."
Naruto smiled. "That's great!" The blond looked back over to the other line, and right at the front, like Luke was in his line, was Silena, and she smiled over at him when she saw him looking at her. The girl had changed into different clothes now, which consisted of an orange t-shirt with Camp Half-Blood written on it and a pair of skinny blue jeans – somehow she made such simple clothing look glamorous. Naruto waved back at the girl with a smile, attracting some of her cabin mate's attention and causing a series of giggles and chatter to brew in the Aphrodite's line.
"Do you like Silena, Naruto?" asked Lacy as they both moved ahead as the line progressed.
Naruto looked down at the girl and shrugged, "Yeah, of course I like her."
"Like her…as in like her?"
Seeing the confused look on Naruto's face, Regulus sighed and shook his whiskered head. "Naru, she's asking if you are interested in making that Silena girl your mate."
Naruto immediately blushed like a tomato and shook his head. "N-Not like that, I just find her really kind and pretty." Lacy giggled up at his expression and Regulus shook his head and slept back on Lacy's shoulder. "Whatever, let's just give our offerings and eat."
Lacy smiled prettily as she patted Reggie's head and kissed his soft fur, making him purr a little. Silena appeared to have seen the scene, although she wouldn't have been able to hear the conversation, she was giggling herself as she walked back to her table, smiling at Lacy as she did.
After another few people had finished the offering, it was Naruto's turn. The blond walked up to the flames and brushed the juiciest part of his roast beef in to the brazier. 'Well, I've never really offered you anything, Father, but here you go; I hope you like roast beef.' Naruto smiled as the watched his offering burn, but he also brushed a part of his salad into the fire. 'I remember you really like this kind of salad, Auntie Hestia, so here you go.'
Naruto waited for little Lacy to finish before they both walked back to the table. Luke had saved them two seats and they all started on their dinner. Naruto took the time to meet some of the other boys around them, and he was introduced to two of Luke's half-brothers, Connor and Travis Stoll. Naruto thought they were pretty funny, but they looked completely different from Luke. Lacy was a little shy to the other people, but she did answer some of the questions people asked her, and it may have been Naruto's imagination, but he saw Regulus act protective of the little girl when Connor and Travis teased her a little.
"So Naruto, did any monsters ever attack you when you were in Japan?" asked Luke as he finished his plate.
Naruto shook his head and sipped on his goblet of tea. "Not really, there were some strange things I would see, but they never really did anything."
"You're lucky…" muttered Lacy. "Monsters started to attack me last year and they almost killed my dad."
"Yeah, monsters usually start attacking us demigods when we turn nine or ten, and it gets really dangerous." Luke leaned onto the table and remembered the times he was first attacked by monsters. "Many people here can share that fear, and I'm sure a lot of us wouldn't have survived if it wasn't for the camp."
Naruto remained silent as he realized just how lucky he had been. Monsters didn't dare his dragon protected home. No monsters would attack the home of the Titaness Rhea, not unless they really yearn to go to Tartarus. Because of that, Naruto had the chance to grow up happily and loved, without monsters trying to kill him. Most monsters wouldn't really threaten him now since his powers have been developed, but he couldn't even imagine what it would have been like if he was alone in a city with no one to train him, like so many others were.
"So, are you two used to being in camp yet?" asked a sudden voice that broke Naruto out of his thoughts.
Lacy stood from her seat and hugged Silena, happy that she was here, "Silena!"
Naruto smiled and nodded. "I already like it here."
Silena smiled back. "That's great, but it should be easier for you to get used to this stuff." The girl hugged Lacy back as she answered, and her fingers would absentmindedly comb through the little girl's blonde hair. "Tomorrow you and Lacy with start to train with the rest of us, so remember to get a good night's sleep."
"I will." The blond replied gladly.
"Congrats on completing your first quest, Silena," Luke said with a kind smile. "Chiron told me it was not an easy quest."
Silena shook her head and smiled back. "Thanks Luke, but it was mostly Naruto's credit; he was the one who killed the monsters."
Luke and the rest of the table looked over at Naruto. "Really, you already know how to fight, Naruto?"
Before Naruto could answer, Lacy jumped in. "Yeah, Naruto killed that flying monster and Reggie killed the Hell Hounds." Lacy was patting Regulus' head as she said it, making the people around her look confused.
"And Icarus killed the other flying monster."
"Well, I'm glad to have you on our capture the flag team." Luke smiled and crossed his arms. "You'll be a good addition to our team, given that you aren't claimed by Friday." Seeing the confused looked on Naruto's face, Luke elaborated. "Every Friday the camp does a Capture the Flag game, and the cabins compete against each other to get the other team's flag."
Naruto chuckled and looked excited. "That sounds like fun!"
Luke chuckled and nodded. "It is!"
"I don't really look forward to it…" muttered Percy as he finished his blue drink. "I have to deal with a horde of Ares' kids trying to beat me to death." The black haired boy shivered as he looked over to the Ares table, which was filled with butch and mean looking kids that ate like barbarians.
Naruto didn't know what Percy was talking about, but Silena's giggle tore his attention away from the other kid. "Don't worry too much, Percy; Clarisse was mad at you for using toilet water to spray her, but I'm sure she won't kill you."
"Great…"
"OW!" The entire Hermes table, along with Silena and most of the other campers looked over at Connor Stoll who was holding his right index finger, which was clearly bleeding. "What in Hades is the problem with your cat, Lacy?!"
Lacy was eating her dinner and didn't know what was happening, so she just shrugged. "I don't know, and Reggie is Naruto's cat."
"Regulus, what did you do that for?" Naruto asked, concerned about the son of Hermes.
"This loser tried to steal a part of the girl's dinner, so I taught him a lesson."
"You shouldn't steal from a little girl, Connor." Naruto gave the other teenager a sharp look, making Connor recoil back a little.
Silena sighed and just patted Lacy's head, "You just can't help yourself, can you Connor?" The beauty kissed Lacy's head and hugged her to close. "I can't believe my cute little Lacy will have to live in your cabin until she gets claimed."
Lacy giggled and nodded, "I can't wait to be claimed!"
"What happens when you get claimed, anyway?" asked Naruto as he returned to his dinner, his hands quickly scooping the salad into his mouth.
"It depends, really," replied Luke. "Usually a symbol of your godly parent will appear over your head and it marks your identity as their child."
Silena nodded, "But my mother has a different way of doing things."
"How so?"
"Well…"
A red glow tore away the attention of everyone around the table. With no warning at all, Lacy's body was shrouded with a ruby haze as a small holographic dove hovered over her head. Regulus leaped from the girl's shoulder and onto Naruto's head, lying casually on his blond hair as he watched the strange phenomenon.
"Exactly like that."
Now the light had attracted everyone's attention and the whole pavilion was staring over at the Hermes Table, with the Aphrodite Table all standing up with smiles on their faces. As the light died down, Naruto, Regulus and Percy were shocked to see what happened to the little girl.
"Whoa, what happened?" muttered Lacy as she rubbed her eyes, wondering why she felt a little strange a second ago.
Naruto tilted his head to the side with Regulus still on his head, "All her clothes are different."
Silena giggled at Naruto's expression and shocked tone, but was also overjoyed at the sight. Instead of a pair of simple jeans and an orange t-shirt, Lacy's clothes had changed into a beautiful little white dress. She looked like a little princess with her blonde hair curled up into two pigtails; she even appeared to have small amounts of make-up on her face.
"You've just been claimed, Lacy."
The little girl looked up at Silena, surprised, "Really?"
Chiron stood from his own table and placed his arm across his chest. "All Hail Lacy Waters, Daughter of Aphrodite, Goddess of Love and Beauty." At once, everyone in the pavilion bowed the heads to Lacy, and Naruto followed suit. The little girl looked a little shy and shocked being the center of attention.
Lacy looked back to Silena, who smiled down at her after she bowed. "Aphrodite, does that mean…"
"Yep!" Silena happily lifted Lacy into her arms and kissed her on the cheek. "You are my little sister, a daughter of Aphrodite!" All of the other Aphrodite children ran over to the Hermes Table and all smiled or patted Lacy's head. "I had a feeling that you would be one of us since you are so cute!"
Lacy smiled happily and she leaned into Silena. "So you're my real big sister?"
Silena laughed happily and nodded. "Yes, we are all your big brothers and sisters." The other Aphrodite children nodded along and some of them kissed her lovingly on the cheek. "Now let's get your things out of the Hermes Cabin and into our home."
Naruto smiled as he watched Silena and her siblings walk away with Lacy in her arms; the girl looked very happy with all her older siblings and was the new favorite of the Aphrodite Cabin. From where he was sitting, Naruto could still hear Lacy asking Silena a question, "Do you think Naruto could be our brother?"
Regulus heard it too and smiled, "I wonder if that Silena girl would be disappointed if you turned out to be her brother."
Naruto sighed at his friend and just returned to his dinner. 'I'm not answering that.'
After dinner, everyone at camp started to assemble around the main hearth with the children of Apollo gathering front and center with their various instruments. After cutely asking Naruto for Regulus, Lacy sat along her new siblings on the pavilion with the lion purring on her lap as she scratched his back. It was fun for Naruto to watch his life-long friend being passed around by the daughters of Aphrodite; Regulus said he was annoyed, but he looked very happy having his back and belly scratched by a group of gorgeous girls.
"Hey Naruto, where are you going?" asked Percy when he saw his new cabin-mate leave the pavilion.
The blond smiled, "I'm just going to walk around; I like to take a stroll after dinner."
With a wave, the son of Zeus walked away from the son of Poseidon, intent of exploring the place he had heard so much about. He could still remember imagining what the camp looked like when he was still a child living at his grandmother's island, and he had to admit that the camp looked much more casual and modern that he had expected. In his mind, the camp would look more like an ancient Greek city – like Athens or Sparta – but he liked the cozy and homely feeling. Naruto understood the significance of the camp to the other demigods, and it was nice to be a part of a home for so many distant cousins.
After a few silent minutes, Naruto absentmindedly made his way to the edge of the camp where the tall pine tree stood proud as a beacon of protection. He couldn't help but be reminded of his dream and the large root that had an unfathomable amount of power running through it. That voice and the scenery were oddly eerie and Naruto knew he should consult with his grandmother or aunt about it soon; he knew demigods were supposed to have very peculiar dreams, and he couldn't figure what his meant. It just didn't make sense that his birth mother would be anymore more than human – he was a demigod, after all.
"What are you doing here?"
Naruto was broken from his thoughts and turned toward the sudden voice, "Oh, hello there." It was a blonde girl, one he had seen around the camp throughout the day. She looked young, probably a few years younger than him, and had a pair of grey eyes that seemed intelligent and confident. She had almost the same shade of blonde hair as he did, but it was tamed and neatly tied into a ponytail that fell over one shoulder. "Sorry to bother you, I'm just taking a walk."
The girl gave a small smile, "I don't mean to come off rude, but no one really comes out here this time of night."
Naruto looked up at the tree and sighed, "For some reason I feel some sort of connection to this tree and I just want to take a closer look." He smiled at the curious gaze of the girl and extended his hand, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet you."
"Annabeth Chase," replied the girl with a firm handshake. "What kind of connection do you feel?"
Naruto shrugged, "I'm not sure, but I feel this soft vibration that comes from this tree. It's almost like I share the same power as the tree."
Annabeth narrowed her eyes, "I heard about you from Chiron. You're the one who helped Silena on her quest and defeated some monsters." She crossed her arms, "He also mentioned that you can use some wind powers, right?"
The looked in Annabeth's eyes looked a little unnerving, "Yeah, I've always been able to."
After a brief moment of silence, Annabeth sighed, "This tree has a long story, a sad story." She looked over at Naruto, a frown marring her face, "We don't like to bring it up; it is just a tragedy." She ran her fingers delicately on the tree bark, "This tree is the source of the protective barrier around the camp, but it hasn't always been here. A few years ago, a group of demigods were coming to camp to find a home where they could be safe, but they were being chased down by an army of Hellhounds and Cyclopes. The strongest demigod in the group was a daughter of Zeus, and she decided to fend off the monsters on her own so her friends could make it to camp on time." Annabeth bit her lower lip as her grey eyes steeled, "She paid the ultimate price for her friends and all other demigods who need this camp."
Naruto gritted his teeth and glared at the ground, "What happened after?"
"Lord Zeus took pity for his daughter, and he transformed her dying body into this tree." Annabeth closed her eyes and sighed, "He gave her the power to protect her loved one after death, and she will continue to stand on guard for all demigods that come after."
"I…I wish I could have met her."
Annabeth stared at Naruto, at his electric blue eyes that looked exactly like those of her late best friend, "I think she would have wished to meet you, too." She sighed and wiped her eyes before turning away, "Sorry if this story ruined your first night at camp, but it's a story every camper should know." Naruto nodded as she continued, "I'm going back now, and you should as well; lights out at 11 o'clock."
Naruto nodded, still looking at his sister's tree, "Wait." Annabeth looked back as he spoke, "What was her name?"
"Thalia, her name was Thalia Grace."
"Thank you. Goodnight, Annabeth."
The girl nodded and walked away, "Good night, Naruto."
Naruto stepped close to the tree and gently placed his hand on the bark, feeling the vibrations run through him. He closed his eyes and rested his forehead against the trunk of the tree, softly flaring his own power to resonate with the vibration. It was his way to thank his late sister, the sister he never had the pleasure to meet. He was the lucky one, that he was sure of, and he needed a way to honor the memory of his sister – a great hero.
"Hey Sis, I'm Naruto, your brother." He sat down on one of the many large roots and rested against the strong trunk, "It's nice to meet you." He sighed and ran his fingers along the bark, "I just came to camp today and I want to say thank you. You're the reason everyone in camp can be safe; you're a hero." He closed his eyes and sighed again, feeling the vibrations lull him to sleep, "If only I could meet you in person."
Slowly, Naruto succumbed to Morpheus' domain…
Luckily for Naruto, it wasn't the same dream as before – this dream was much more serene and beautiful. Instead of a dark cavern, it was a large golden field of wheat under a cloudless blue sky. The wind was softly blowing and made waves along the wheat, a soft rustling of a tune filled the air. It was peaceful and very calm. Oddly enough, Thalia's tree was still what he was resting on – a pine tree in the middle of a wheat field.
"Who are you?"
Naruto's eyes widened when he saw a girl, around the same age as him, stand in front of him. She was dressed all in black – a black leather jacket, form-fitting black jeans, and black platform boots – and looked very shocked, as if she'd never seen another person for years. For some reason, Naruto felt that it was actually the case.
He cleared his throat and stood up, his electric blue eyes staring into a very similar pair and a head of black hair that was just as spiky as his own, "I'm Naruto, son of Zeus." He had a feeling that saying his parenthood would matter greatly in this case.
The girl's eyes widened, "I'm Thalia, daughter of Zeus."
The End!
It's been quite a long while since I've updated this story, but nonetheless, here's an update.
I will update "A Father's Love" or "Young God" next, so be on the lookout for it.
PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW! XD